The Vanderbilt Commodores men's basketball team represents Vanderbilt University in the Southeastern Conference (SEC). The Commodores have won three SEC regular season titles (1965, 1974 and 1993) and two SEC Tournament championships (1951 and 2012). They have competed in thirteen NCAA Tournaments, making it to the Elite Eight once (1965) and the Sweet Sixteen six times (1965, 1974, 1988, 1993, 2004, and 2007). Vanderbilt has played in eleven National Invitation Tournaments, winning it in 1990 and finishing runners-up in 1994.
Maps, Directions, and Place Reviews
Memorial Gymnasium
The Commodores play their home games in Memorial Gymnasium. Memorial Gymnasium was built in the early 1950s. It was dedicated as the campus memorial to students and alumni killed in World War II; a plaque commemorating those who died is displayed in the Gym's North lobby.
At the time of the Gym's construction, there was a serious discussion within the Vanderbilt community about whether the school should de-emphasize intercollegiate athletics and refocus on its academic program. As a compromise between those who advocated increased athletics competition and those who argued in favor of de-emphasis, the Gymnasium was built to hold only about 9,000 seats, and it would be readily adaptable to other uses--significantly, as a possible concert hall.
Consequently, the gymnasium floor was built up above its surroundings, more in the nature of a stage. The areas out of bounds along the sidelines were very wide, in contrast with the small facility which it replaced, where the walls were right along the sidelines and players could scrape their shoulders bringing the ball up the court. This necessitated the placement of the benches at the end of the court, which was not highly unusual at the time.
In addition, each goal was anchored by two far-reaching beams attached to support columns, with extra support coming from cables stretching all the way to the gym's ceiling. In the case of a backboard shatter or beam fracture, replacing these goals would be highly difficult, compared to the usual goal setup at most venues.
Memorial Gym is well known for its unusual design. The end-of-the-floor bench location is now unique in major college basketball, and SEC coaches who travel to Memorial, along with coaches from other schools who have played at Vanderbilt as a post-season venue, have said that the unusual setup gives Vanderbilt a tremendous home court advantage, since no other facility in which opponents play is arranged in such a way.
Vanderbilt Basketball Record Video
Year-by-year season records
Note: Fansonly.com reports Vanderbilt's overall record in 1937-38 as 9-12, while SECSports.com reports it as 10-11.
Source: Soconsports.com
Source: SECSports.com
Source: Fansonly.com
Vanderbilt Coaching Record
Retired numbers
Only two male Commodores have had their jerseys retired by the university:
- Clyde Lee #43 - Lee was perhaps the greatest player in Commodore history. He averaged the most points per game in school history and the balconies on the south end of Memorial Gymnasium are commonly referred to as the "balconies that Clyde built".
- Perry Wallace #25 - The first African-American scholarship athlete in the Southeastern Conference.
Consecutive games with a 3-point field goal
Vanderbilt is one of only three teams to make a 3-point field goal in every game since the rule was implemented in the 1986-87 season. The other two teams to do so are Princeton and UNLV. The Commodores have made a 3-point shot in 998 consecutive games as of March 11, 2017.
Postseason
NCAA tournament results
The Commodores have appeared in the NCAA Tournament 15 times. Their combined record is 10-16.
NIT results
The Commodores have appeared in the National Invitation Tournament (NIT) 12 times. Their combined record is 20-11. They were NIT champions in 1990.
All-Americans
Source: VUCommodores.com
SEC Players of the Year
Source: VUCommodores.com
Academic All-Americans
Olympians
- Jeff Turner- won the gold medal in men's basketball as a member of Team USA at the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles.
Vanderbilt Alums Coaching in College Basketball
- James Strong - Class of 2000, currently at Belmont University
- Julian Terrell - Class of 2006, currently at Austin Peay State University
- Martin Bahar - Class of 2006, currently at The University of Southern California
- Dan Cage - Class of 2007, currently at The University of Pittsburgh
- Sam Ferry - Class of 2010, currently at Monmouth University
Coaching awards
- Kevin Stallings - SEC Coach of the Year 2007 and 2010
- Eddie Fogler - 1993 National Coach of the Year by AP, UPI, CBS, USBWA, Scripps-Howard, Sports lllustrated, Sporting News, Basketball Weekly
- C. M. Newton - SEC Coach of the Year, 1988 and 1989
- Wayne Dobbs - SEC Coach of the Year, 1979
- Roy Skinner - SEC Coach of the Year, 1965, 1967, 1974, and 1976
All-time leaders
Totals current as of March 15, 2012.
Points
Points per game (min 50 games)
Rebounds
Assists
Steals
Blocks
Source: 2015-16 Vanderbilt Commodores Media Guide
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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